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Holiday, Vacation & Tour

On a crisp winter day, our coldest day so
far, with a brilliant blue sky, I got going early at
about 7:15 am and drove about 20 minutes from Banff to
the tourist town of Canmore. This mountain town is
located about an hour from Calgary, just 5 minutes
outside the gates to the Banff National Park and is part
of Kananaskis County , one of the main recreational
areas just outside of Calgary. The Nakiska Ski area is
not far from Canmore and it played host to the alpine
events dur...

Canada, Calgary, Baff, Nakiska,
ski, dog, sledding, travel, adventure

On a crisp
winter day, our coldest day so far, with a brilliant
blue sky, I got going early at about 7:15 am and drove
about 20 minutes from Banff to the tourist town of
Canmore. This mountain town is located about an hour
from Calgary, just 5 minutes outside the gates to the
Banff National Park and is part of Kananaskis County ,
one of the main recreational areas just outside of
Calgary. The Nakiska Ski area is not far from Canmore
and it played host to the alpine events during the 1988
Calgary Winter Olympics.

Canmore is nestled deep
inside the Bow Valley beneath the Front Ranges of the
Canadian Rockies. Due to the beauty of the surrounding
wilderness areas, several Hollywood movies have been
filmed here, including movies such as Legends of the
Fall and Dances with Wolves.

The development of
this area really took off when the Canadian Pacific
Railway (CPR) constructed its railway line through the
mountains in 1888, providing convenient access to mining
companies looking to tap into the area’s rich coal
deposits. Canmore was founded shortly after and
attracted prospectors which were soon followed by
hotels, restaurants and shops. The North West Mounted
Police had an outpost here with a “two man and two horse
barrack” and at some point Canmore even had an opera
house.

Mining came to an end in 1979, but today
Canmore has developed into a major recreational centre
that attracts athletes, artists, nature lovers and
adventure seekers. That was the category that I fell
into today, as I was seeking out a truly unusual
adventure: Dog sledding!

Punctually at 8:15 am I
arrived at the retail outlet of Snowy Owl Adventures to
be included in their 2-hour “Power Hound Express” tour
that was to start at 9 am. The retail outlet itself
features a variety of clothing, souvenirs, pictures and
books with a dog sledding theme. I also rented big
insulated boots to make sure my feet wouldn’t get cold
on this very brisk winter day.

A group of about 9
or 10 people were ready to get out on the trails, to be
pulled by a group of enthusiastic canine athletes. Our
group had travelers from various parts of Canada, Texas,
England and Holland and everybody was excited to get out
there. Chris, our driver, packed us into a van and up we
went into the mountains. We drove by several extremely
scenic drinking water reservoirs and about 20 minutes
later we arrived in the Spray Lakes area of Kananaskis
County, very close to the Three Sisters Hydroelectric
Generating Station.

The first thing we saw was
the trailer with the transport kennels for the sled dogs
and five teams of enthusiastic canines were already
waiting for us. Jereme, one of our dog sledding guides,
gave us a half hour safety presentation and instructions
on how to ride the sled. That’s where my first big
surprise came in: I didn’t realize that we ourselves
would get a chance to drive the sled, I had assumed that
we’d simply be packed into the sled and the guides would
be driving us.

But no, there are actually 3
options for dogsledding adventurers: you can sit
comfortably inside the sled and be driven by a guide;
you can drive the dog team one-on-one together with one
of the instructors; or you can actually drive the sled
dog team yourself with the company of family and
friends, following one of the instructors. So for all
the real adventurers out there: this is an opportunity
to get behind the sled and drive the dog sled team
yourself!

To get started I actually decided to
play it safe and elected to sit down and let my
instructor Natalie handle the driving. Since I was here
to document this experience that would allow me to
actually take photos and video clips of this unique
experience. Three of the dog sled teams this morning had
signed up for the 2-hour program and 2 of those sleds
were going to be driven by the participants themselves
rather than the instructors. Two other teams were
scheduled for the 4-hour “Sunfeather Winterlude”
program, this half-day excursion is Snowy Owl’s most
popular ride.

The safety instruction introduced
us to the essential commands to get the dogs going
(“Hike!”, or as Natalie would say “Hike up, puppies!”)
and to get them to stop (“Whoa” – in a deep voice) while
stepping on the sled's brake. In between it's a great
idea to cheer on the dogs with enthusiastic comments.
Jereme also explained that the dogs are Alaskan Huskies,
and most of them are a mixture of huskies or malamutes
with other breeds like border collies which makes for a
very enthusiastic, cooperative and smart breed of dog.

Jereme mentioned that it’s very important to step on
the brake while riding downhill to slow the sled down,
and to lean right when heading into a right-hand turn,
and to lean to the left when heading into a left-hand
turn. The key thing is never to let go of the sled or
step off the brake when standing since the dogs can be a
bit mischievous and may take off on you. On uphill runs
it is recommended that the sled driver get off and run
beside the sled so the dogs have to pull less weight.

Well, now that our briefing was coming to an end,
the excitement was building, both among the human
passengers/drivers as well as among the dogs. 5 teams of
Alaskan huskies were raring to go and towards the end of
the safety presentation there was lots of barking,
yelping, howling and commotion, indicating that the dogs
were indeed ready to take us out on our big adventure.

So I sat down inside the comfortably cushioned sled
and Natalie zipped me into a sleeping bag to keep me
warm. All the teams were now ready to go and Natalie
issued the key command “Hike up, puppies!” and off we
went through a beautiful narrow forest trail that opened
up into a clearing from where you had a gorgeous view of
the imposing mountain range behind. Then we went down a
series of hills and I got bounced a bit in the sled,
fortunately the sled's and my own built-in cushioning
protected my rear end from most of the impact. There
were a few spills in the amateur-driven sleds behind us,
I guess first-time dog-sledding is similar to any
adventure sport in that it takes a bit of time to get
the hang of it. But none of the spills were serious and
once the initial challenges were overcome it was a
smooth ride for everyone and we continued our beautiful
journey through the forests above Canmore.

After
about half an hour our three teams on the 2-hour program
had reached the turnaround point and we arrived at a
picturesque mountain lake called Goat Pond that was
completely surrounded by mountains. Now it was picture
time and Natalie kindly offered to take photos of all
the sled teams.

After a brief rest we were ready
to continue on and Natalie asked me if I actually wanted
to drive the sled myself. By this time I was thoroughly
comfortable with the experience, so of course I jumped
at the idea. One of the passengers from another sled
took my cozy spot inside the sleeping bag, and Natalie
and I each balanced ourselves on one of the rails of the
sled, while our eager sled dogs were pulling us onto the
home stretch. Natalie told me a little about herself,
that she is a dog sledding instructor in the winter and
a construction worker in her brother’s company in
Northern Alberta in the summer. She seems like a
thoroughly outdoorsy and adventurous woman who really
enjoys what she is doing.

Our ride continued on
beside a river until we reached the Three Sisters
Hydroelectric Power Station and finally returned to our
starting point. Then it was time to pet the dogs and
take pictures of our eager transportation providers. The
dogs are amazingly friendly and from what I could tell,
they enjoyed the experience as much as we humans did.

Our exciting outing concluded with refreshments, hot
apple cider and “mystery cookies” beside a fire at West
Side Camp where all the adventurers and our instructor
had a chance to socialize and talk about our experience.
A photographer had also taken pictures of each dog sled
team and this was an opportunity to buy some photos.

In addition to the 2 hour and half-day dog sled
tours, Snowy Owl Aventures offers a variety of other
unique adventures: Snowy Owl also offers an 8 hour
full-day program that includes instructions on how to
track indigenous animals like wolves, cougars and
rabbits. Their 4-hour "Snowy Mountain Experience" takes
you back in time to a winter festival in local Inuit and
First Nations communities. Their 4.5 hour "Bow Trail
BBQ" combines a 2-hour dog sled outing with a Western
Style Ride provided by horses, capped off by a blazing
bonfire in their "Donut Tent" for storytelling. Their
"Ghosts of Fortune Mountain "program extends over 2 days
and 1 night and includes touring, kennel visits and
hearty meals. The nights are spent in a genuine, heated
Sioux Indian Tipi. Last but not least, the "Flight of
the Great Snowy Owl" lasts 4.5 hours and takes you by
helicopter into the wilderness of the Canadian Rockies
before spending a half-day touring by dog team.

Just shortly after 11 am our van driver Chris arrived
again with another batch of adventurers from the village
and it was time for us to wave a final goodbye to our
canine friends and enjoy the scenic ride back into
Canmore. Once back at the retail outlet I returned my
boots and hopped back in the car to drive back to Banff
to pick up my husband so we could go on our final
half-day of skiing at Lake Louise.

My two-hour
Dog sledding adventure in the morning was the perfect
start to an exciting winter day and it’s certainly been
one of the most unique and special adventures I have
ever had a chance to experience……

Hello From Banff -
Arrival In Banff And Skiing At Norquay

On Sunday, after our high-intensity day in
Calgary and after stocking up on groceries in the Mount
Royal Area,, we left the city to head towards the Rocky
Mountains. It was an interesting drive on Highway 1, the
Transcanada Highway, heading towards the mountains.
There were some interesing looking clouds on the horizon
that kept us entertained on the drive and it didn't take
us any more than about an hour and 15 mintues to get to
Banff. We checked in at the Banff Rocky Mounta...

Canada, rockies, skiing, Calgary, Banff, Norquay

On Sunday, after our high-intensity day in Calgary
and after stocking up on groceries in the Mount Royal
Area,, we left the city to head towards the Rocky
Mountains. It was an interesting drive on Highway 1, the
Transcanada Highway, heading towards the mountains.
There were some interesing looking clouds on the horizon
that kept us entertained on the drive and it didn't take
us any more than about an hour and 15 mintues to get to
Banff. We checked in at the Banff Rocky Mountain
condominium resort and settled in for the evening to
relax after a couple of really hectic days.

Yesterday after a leisurely breakfast we got up to take
a drive through Banff. Banff is a quaint mountain town
with many different hotels, restaurants, shops and
galleries. We drove down Banff Avenue, the town's main
street, and since I had to pick a package up at the
Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel, we briefly explored this
historic landmark. When Canadian Pacific built the
railroads in the 1880s towards the West Coast, they
determined that the Banff / Lake Louise area had
tremendous potential for tourism and CPR built the Banff
Springs Hotel in 1888 to develop this area for all the
travellers who were keen to discover the rugged beauty
of the Canadian Rocky Mountains.

After our very
brief introductory exploration of this impressive
building we decided to go skiing at Norquay, just 10
minutes from downtown Banff. On our first full day here
we wanted to take it easy a bit since I am just getting
over a major chest cold. I figured a couple of hours of
local skiing would be enough of an initiation to the
Canadian Rockies.

Norquay refers to itself as
"Banff's Best Kept Secret" and it has been around since
1926. Incidentally, Norquay is home to Thomas Grandi,
Canada's World Cup GS 2 time Champion. This ski resort
is also the only one in the Banff area that offers night
skiing.

What we found great was that Norquay
offers the so-called “Ski & Ride by the Hour” passes and
a 2 hour ticket was only $29, a great value. We drove up
from the town on a forest road with many switchbacks and
stopped several times at different lookout points to
look over the Bow Valley and the Town of Banff. The
vistas of the surrounding mountains are simply
magnificent.

We arrived at the ski resort not
much later (Norquay is only 5 km from the Town of
Banff), and since it was a Monday, the slopes were nice
and empty. Norquay’s elevation at the base is 1,630 m
(5350 feet) and at the top it is 2,133 m (7000 feet).
The vertical drop is 1650 feet and the resort has 32
runs. About 20 % of its terrain is geared towards
beginners, 36% towards intermediate skiers, 28% to
advanced and 16% to expert skiers. According to their
website, Norquay also has a terrain park that features
gap jumps, table tops, and hits for all levels of
riders. We , however, decided to stick to our good old
trusted skis and forego the jumps and table tops....

The runs on the south side looked extremely
imposing, and most of them are single or double black
diamonds. The slopes are extremely steep and covered
with all sorts of bumps and moguls and this was an area
we didn’t feel confident enough to tackle. I am sure
expert level skiers would have a ball there.

We
started with the first of four chairlifts and worked our
way northwards and thoroughly enjoyed the extremely
well-groomed blue runs. As a matter of fact, Norquay
offers a Grooming Guarantee that ensures that the runs
are always in perfect condition. We flew down a few of
the single-black diamond runs, and because of the
excellent grooming there was no problem at all, even for
two non-experts like us.

At one point we ventured
onto the northernmost trail which connected horizontally
along the hill to the last run which was a double-black
diamond run at the top. It was very steep, with lots of
moguls, and very narrow, probably no wider than 3 m (10
ft). That was a slightly unfortunate choice since we got
bumped a little by the topography, but once we had made
it through that dicey stretch, the slope improved and we
enjoyed our run to the bottom of the hill.

After
our 2-hour ticket was finished we relaxed for a while in
the spacious chalet at the bottom and watched the skiers
coming down the hill. We both commented that Norquay was
a very pleasant skiing experience and a great initiation
to the Rocky Mountains.

Hello From Banff:
High Altitude Skiing At Sunshine Village

We planned on an afternoon of skiing at
Sunshine Village, one of the largest ski resorts in
Canada. It is located just 15 minutes from Banff, going
west on the TransCanada Highway. Sunshine Village is a
pretty historic place and as a ski resort it dates all
the way back to 1936.

With over 3,300 acres of
skiable terrain Sunshine Village is one of the largest
ski resorts in Canada. The top elevation is 8,954 feet
(2730 m) and the base elevation is 3,514 feet (1070 m).
It rec...

Canada, rockies, skiing, Calgary,
Banff, Sunshine Village

We planned on an
afternoon of skiing at Sunshine Village, one of the
largest ski resorts in Canada. It is located just 15
minutes from Banff, going west on the TransCanada
Highway. Sunshine Village is a pretty historic place and
as a ski resort it dates all the way back to 1936.

With over 3,300 acres of skiable terrain Sunshine
Village is one of the largest ski resorts in Canada. The
top elevation is 8,954 feet (2730 m) and the base
elevation is 3,514 feet (1070 m). It receives a huge
amount of natural snowfall: up to 33 feet or 9 m. Skiing
usually lasts from mid November all the way to late May.

This resort straddles the Continental Divide and
some of the runs are in Alberta and some in British
Columbia. 107 runs spread out over 3 mountains (Goat's
Eye Mountain, Lookout Mountain and Mt. Standish). The
whole area is serviced by a high-speed 8 passenger
gondola that whisks you from the parking lot up to the
main village. In addition, there are also 5 high-speed
quad chairs, 2 quads, 1 triple, and 1 double chair and 2
magic carpets.

Sunshine Village also offers
extreme terrain for really expert skiers. Delirium Dive
is an expert ski area that requires special safety
equipment and precautions such as being equipped with an
avalanche transceiver, a shovel and having at least one
other person with you. Goat's Eye Mountain offers a
number of highly challenging double-black diamond runs
that should be mastered before you even consider
venturing into this area.

At our level we decided
to stick to the blue runs, which on this snowy day with
lots of accumulated snow were plenty challenging enough
for us. Every trail had turned into a mogul run, with
all the extra piles of snow that had been carved into
bumps by the other skiers. It was basically snowing the
whole day with the sun peaking through in between the
snow flakes. The night before 10 cm of fresh snow had
fallen, and during the day several more centimeters got
added. All the extra snow made this a really great
workout, and we had to work really hard to push the
white powdery stuff around.

The Banff National
Park is unique in that it restricts development and
there are no sprawling condominiums at the base of any
of the 3 Banff area ski resorts. It is almost a
throw-back to an earlier time when skiing was less
commercialized. The only ski-in/ski-out accommodation is
at the recently renovated 84-room Sunshine Inn, located
in the main village of the Sunshine Village Resort at an
altiude of 7082 feet. Ski Canada has referred to the
Sunshine Inn as "the best rooms with a view in Canada!".

For those with an appetite Sunshine Village offers a
variety of culinary options: the Creekside Bar & Grill
is located the gondola base. The Deli, Alpine Grill and
the Lookout Bistro are all located in the Day Lodge in
Sunshine Village. The Java Loft Coffee Bar and Chimney
Corner Lounge are located in the Sunshine Inn while the
Mad Trapper's Saloon can be found in the Old Sunshine
Lodge. Goat's Eye Gardens is located right next to the
Goat's Eye Express and offers cafeteria style food.

An interesting feature of this resort is that it
offers a SnowHost program, an absolute free program for
visitors, that are welcomed by a team of frontline
ambassadors for Sunshine village, all dressed in yellow
and black outfits. Every day at noon the SnowHosts take
skiers / riders out on tours using blue runs and show
them how to access this monstruous ski area.

We
spent most of the afternoon in the Lookout Mountain (top
elevation: 8954 feet or 2730 m) and Mt. Standish areas,
going up the Angel Express and the Wawa Quad Chair.
There are many blue and green runs available in this
area which was helpful on this challenging day. After a
rest in the Goat's Eye Gardens cafeteria and a sinfully
filling portion of poutine, a truly Canadian culinary
treat that combines French fries with curds and gravy,
we felt strong enough to tackle Goat's Eye Mountain
which offers mainly single and double black diamond
runs. By that time it was about 3:30 and after getting
safely down the mountain we decided to make our way down
to the Gondola Base. We skied down a picturesque green
run called Banff Avenue all the way to our car,
surrounded by peacefulness in the forest.

On our
way back to Banff the sun finally came out and we
stopped the car several times because the scenery was so
breath-taking. The Rockies do have a way of sucking you
in....